The Austin Deaf Toros continued their march to a fifth consecutive SWBAD title, with an impromptu 37-9 run to put away East Memphis. For much of the game East Memphis hung around for as long as they possibly could before the Toros put a strangle hold on the game. In the early going the Memphis squad played out of their minds. Led by Cedric Crowder and Jerry Butler, Memphis sprinted to a 15-5 advantage. The Toros would not panic this early in the game and found a spark from swingman William Spencer who gave the Toros a shot in the arm to get things underway. Spencer drove and grabbed rebounds for put back baskets as well as made transition scores to pace the Toros.
The Toros continued to feel their way into the game with Termiea Bowers by slashing the interior of Memphis defense. Bowers gashed the foe by dropping dimes for Chris Brass and Joe Estep in the paint and occasionally finishing off drives himself. With the score being stagnant and the Toros clinging to a slim lead with 11 minutes to go the storm had arrived and the Toros were done toying with East Memphis.
The defense set the tone. Repeated steals and costly error by Memphis coupled with fatigue the Toros took advantage of their opponent’s lack of stamina to run with them for 40 minutes. Brass was also a big help on the defensive end. All game he was in position to take charging calls but for some reason the refs were making blocking calls instead. During the 37-9 run Brass collected four charges. The officiating crew would have no choice but give him credit for positioning himself and taking on all drivers in the hole. Each charge would prove to be a big play for the Toros as they surged to victory.
The score was 46-40 in favor of the Toros when Spencer knocked down a three pointer to ignite the burst. Bowers found Brass for a couple of layups. Joe Estep had awakened from his slumber in this match scoring a couple of put-backs to extend the lead. But the story may have been an unheralded man off the bench, Danny Davidson. In the first half Davidson knocked down a three pointer while being fouled. The potential four point play got the Toros off the ground then but in the second half Davidson’s relentless energy off the bench gave the Toros an extra boost they needed. He collected rebounds, steals, assist and scores. His grunt work earned him his first double-double in points and rebounds as a member of the Toros.
This semi-final win sends the Toros to their fifth straight finals in as many years. Spencer led all scorers and rebounders with 21 and 12 respectively. Bowers had 18 points and 7 assist, Brass 14 points and 10 rebounds, Estep 10 points and 11 rebounds, Davidson finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds for the four times defending champions.
